Crap got some unexpected eggs.

I was just cleaning some cages and one of my 2006 normal females laid three beautifull eggs. I purchased her a year ago along with 24 others from Pro Exotics LAST YEAR! When she was shipped she was bagged with several others. There must have been a male in the bag (should have all been females). She has been alone since then. I don't get it??? Crap, I am so not prepared for this.

No wonder she was the only one not eating for the last couple of months. Lol, I even unknowingly documented her post ovulation shed. No cool down either, this is bizarre. Ok I need to think quick. Iv'e got a ranco thermostat and some heat cable maybe I can rig something up for now.

maternal inc???

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dacalio

I was just cleaning some cages and one of my 2006 normal females laid three beautifull eggs. I purchased her a year ago along with 24 others from Pro Exotics LAST YEAR! When she was shipped she was bagged with several others. There must have been a male in the bag (should have all been females). She has been alone since then. I don't get it??? Crap, I am so not prepared for this.

No wonder she was the only one not eating for the last couple of months. Lol, I even unknowingly documented her post ovulation shed. No cool down either, this is bizarre. Ok I need to think quick. Iv'e got a ranco thermostat and some heat cable maybe I can rig something up for now.

---

Eggs a year later?
Are they fertile?

Not a clue yet, I haven't touched them. I'm going to the store to pick up a cooler. I forgot I have some flexwatt too, looks like I should be able to make an incubator. I used my tempgun and she has them at 88 F. They do look a little dehydrated but nothing serious.

Before you get your incubator set up it may be worth checking if they are fertile with a flashlight.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Somed00d

Before you get your incubator set up it may be worth checking if they are fertile with a flashlight.

---

Bingo!

Will do, I'm panicking!

OK, one is definitely fertile! Bright red vasculature.

Now she's pissed. Poor thing was only 1000 grams a couple of weeks ago.

One word: Retention.

Congrats on the pre-kids.



Cheers,
Kat

This must be a joke. BPs have to be 1,500g to breed. :rofl: Congrats on the eggs, and good luck with them.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PythonWallace

This must be a joke. BPs have to be 1,500g to breed. :rofl: Congrats on the eggs, and good luck with them.

---

Lol, too funny! Thanks man

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PythonWallace

This must be a joke. BPs have to be 1,500g to breed. :rofl: Congrats on the eggs, and good luck with them.

---

I think you hit a 1 by mistake in your reply. :D:D:D:D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dacalio

OK, one is definitely fertile! Bright red vasculature.

---

Good luck. Hopefully they are all fertile. :gj:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dacalio

OK, one is definitely fertile! Bright red vasculature.

---

That one was mine.... You didn't notice the little present I gave you? I will be by in about 60 days to get her...

thanks.

Mike

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mcavana

That one was mine.... You didn't notice the little present I gave you? I will be by in about 60 days to get her...

thanks.

Mike

---

Lol, hopefully this will be my first ever ball python egg to hatch so this one is pretty important to me. Even though this is not what I had in mind. For those out there that don't me I am rather new to ball pythons. The only snake I have successfully bred were burmese pythons but that was nearly 10 years ago. I have bred Jackson's chameleons in Hawaii and that was my introduction to the world of herpetoculture.

My plans were to take these 2006 females and breed them their third winter. I guess they had other plans. Here are some pics I got of my incubator setup. Tell me what you think. I know the temps are off but I just threw it together and it has yet to warm up. I am hating the Ranco, it's not proportional. A herpstat is on the way.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...2/DSC00247.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...2/DSC00249.jpg

Believe me I have nothing against breeding a 1000 gram female ball python but I would never do that their second winter. I threw my temp-gun in there for scale. I am waiting for the temps to stabilize before I throw the eggs in there.

I wish jasballs was here such a great source of information!

Here is my favorite boy just for giggles.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...2/DSC00234.jpg

That's crazy...Good Luck with them!

I was wrong not one was fertile. All THREE are!

Here is more goodness!

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...2/DSC00252.jpg



To be honest, I never did sex all these "girls". I have only popped hatchlings. I've always been under the assumption that older snakes should be probed instead and I want someone to show me in person before I try.

Do you guys think pro-exotics would even believe me 1 year later and try to compensate me if I do find the boy?

Well, looks like you got yourself set-up. Not sure what part of GA you are in, if you were close, I was going to offer to incubate them for you in my 'bator if you hadn't gotten anything hooked up.

Congrats on your clutch!

Wow thanks Robin, your too kind.

I wanted to thank everyone on this site for the abundance of information and support. I know a normal X normal isn't much of an accomplishment but hey it's my first. I know it's too early to celebrate but just the fact that I got some fertile eggs gives me a whole lot of confidence. I've got some great plans for this upcoming breeding season.:D

A special thanks too Heather Wong is due for her great thread on "How to Incubate Eggs." I had to peek at it again just to make sure I had everything right.

I scrubbed down my girls cage and top of her rack slot. Hopefully I can get her eating soon. Tomorrow I will palpate to see if everything came out ok. She was a little pissy today, thats the most I've been bitten by a ball in any 5 minute time frame.

Thats intense... Nice temp setup you got going there... Your 3 eggs will be fine!

:) Please keep us updated

I was talking to a breeder and he told me that sperm retention for this long is unlikely. Immaculate conception was thrown out there. Anyone know much about this? I mean actual documented cases and even genetic studies? I was told there are a few cases of this known in pythons.

In either case, it would seem this could throw a huge wrench in the het market for recessives. I know certain breeders are carefull of breeding females to different recessive males for subsequent years.

This could explain the weirdness of certain morphs just popping up randomly in people's collections.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dacalio

I was talking to a breeder and he told me that sperm retention for this long is unlikely. Immaculate conception was thrown out there. Anyone know much about this? I mean actual documented cases and even genetic studies? I was told there are a few cases of this known in pythons.

In either case, it would seem this could throw a huge wrench in the het market for recessives. I know certain breeders are carefull of breeding females to different recessive males for subsequent years.

This could explain the weirdness of certain morphs just popping up randomly in people's collections.

---

When exactly did you get the snakes, and when was the last time they were grouped up? I heard up to 9 months is known, but I've been wondering about the whole het thing lately with females that were bred to a different male the previous year. It seems like females can retain for a long time, but I think I've only heard about late in the season girls throwing retained clutches, or new adult females, but I haven't heard of anyone getting a retained clutch from a girl that's been in someone's collection for more than a year, the following breeding season.

Hi,

And while I couldn't spell it for the life of me virgin birth is called parthenogenesis I think.

There have been a few threads about it over the eyars - and I think there may even have been one this year.


dr del

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dr del

Hi,

And while I couldn't spell it for the life of me virgin birth is called parthenogenesis I think.

There have been a few threads about it over the eyars - and I think there may even have been one this year.


dr del

---

Are there any cases or rumors of parthenogenesis in ball pythons, or any python species?

Hi,

At least two cases discussed in ball pythons on this forum and I am fairly sure it has been reported in burmese before.

Until someone does a dna test though I don't know how you would confirm it.


dr del

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dr del

Hi,

And while I couldn't spell it for the life of me virgin birth is called parthenogenesis I think.

There have been a few threads about it over the eyars - and I think there may even have been one this year.


dr del

---

Yes that is the word I could not think of it. Thank you.

I lost a lot of e-mails from last year due to some issues with bellsouth and AT&T merging so I do not have an exact date. I purchased them a couple of months after moving. I moved in April. My e-mails go as far back as August and I know it was at least a couple of months before then. I can look at some credit card charges to get an exact date but I know I got them approximately 1 year ago. They were individually housed since I received them, no doubt about that.